As powerful as women may feel wearing a pair of stylish stilettos, new research has found that heels can have detrimental consequences, potentially causing imbalance in the feet.

A new study focused on females who wear high heels regularly for work and found that while the muscles around the ankle are initially strengthened by the footwear, eventually they were at more risk of sprain due to becoming too dominant.

Dr Yong-Seok Jee, from Hanseo University in South Korea, documented findings from 40 professional women who wear extremely high heels around three times a week. The ankle muscles became dominant after wearing the shoes for one to three years.

"As high heels are in fashion and sometimes required for certain professions, many women may be unaware of the extent to which [the shoes] may be weakening their dynamic balance," Dr Jee said.

"Eventually, major accidents such as falls and serious ankle sprains can result without proper maintenance and conditioning."